Daily Ancestoränka
Änka (older spelling enka) is Swedish for "widow"; in household rolls a widow often appears as Änkan before her name.
Änka marks a woman whose husband has died. In a household roll a widow can appear at the head of her own household or within another family's, sometimes marked inhyses. Older records spell the word enka, abbreviated enk. or E.
Her husband's death should be in the death book shortly before she first appears as änka. The male form is änkling.
As seen in a recordHousehold examination roll of a Swedish parish, 1840s
Enkan Kjerstin Olsdotter, f. 1789, inhyses
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Sources
How to cite this page
Daily Ancestor. "änka." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/swedish/anka. Last checked 2026-10-28.